Pinnacle Insights
McKinsey data show rapid social media uptake
July 4, 2010 | Written by Will Hardie
McKinsey’s annual survey of shows companies are adopting social media at a rapid pace compared to 2009, particularly blogs and social networks:
Also interesting to note is which departments have control of the initiatives. For internal initiatives it’s the IT function; for customer-oriented initiatives it’s Marketing.
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Mapping the rise of Twitter
June 30, 2010 | Written by Duncan Hart
How do you judge the popularity of something and the degree to which it has penetrated a nation’s psyche? I often use the following benchmarks: number and regularity of appearances in the mainstream media; whether it has become the subject of study by apparently credible academics and whether it has developed its own glossary of [...]
Political editor v spin doctor: compelling or embarrassing?
May 20, 2010 | Written by Duncan Hart
Discussion in today’s edition of PR Week regarding the recent on-air spat between Adam Boulton, the Sky News political editor, and Alastair Campbell, the Labour spin doctor, and whether it made compelling viewing.
For those who didn’t see it: following the outcome of the general election, but before the creation of the coalition government, Campbell and [...]
Careless talk costs careers
May 19, 2010 | Written by Duncan Hart
“Careless talk costs lives”, or so it was said in World War II, as people were urged to “keep it under their hat” rather than taking the risk of giving enemy spies information they could use against them. Today, careless talk costs careers, and reputations.
There have been a number of such incidents of late, from the [...]
It’s what people hear that counts
| Written by Duncan Hart
An interviewee on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme this morning said (approximately), it’s not what you say, but what people hear that matters. How true.
Of course, there are times when the media hears every word loud and clear, often when you don’t want them to. Off-the-cuff remarks or off-hand comments are almost always picked [...]
Don’t say it, if you don’t want it heard
April 29, 2010 | Written by Duncan Hart
When media training I always remind people of two critically important – and related – points, which any senior business person – or politician – should always remember:
Firstly, they (the media) cannot print what you don’t say. If you don’t want it to make the headlines, then don’t say it in the first place.
Secondly, you never [...]
Word of mouth
April 20, 2010 | Written by Will Hardie
Word of mouth; buzz; third party advocacy — whatever you call it, enlisting or inspiring other people to spread key messages is a kind of holy grail for marketing communications. Third party voices are more credible and influential than anything a marketing, advertising or PR operation can put out on in an organisation’s own voice. [...]
The social media effect
April 12, 2010 | Written by Will Hardie
Excellent webgraphic from the digital buzz blog mapping the flow of a story through social media.
This simplifies the dynamic enough not to bend the brain too much…
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Social media demographics
April 5, 2010 | Written by Will Hardie
Trawling back through a month of neglected RSS, I came across this study from Pingdom (via Brian Solis) finally giving some hard data to compare the age groups that use different social networks.
We all know the importance of segmenting audiences and choosing targeted channels to engage with particular groups, and it’s great to be able to [...]
Tears before election time
March 4, 2010 | Written by Duncan Hart
We have recently witnessed a new phenomenon; influential men (and Peter Andre) breaking down on TV, showing real emotion and revealing the ‘inner man’.
Gordon Brown on Piers Morgan’s show, and Alistair Campbell with Andrew Marr have both been overcome, and who can forget Peter Andre shedding tears as he spoke of how he would fight [...]
